//------------------------------// // Second Sign: Part 8 // Story: Equestrian Epoch: Final Hope // by Michael_Ravencroft //------------------------------// Descend the Second Envoy The Wonderbolts team was standing by in the dugout landing pad. The pegasi could hear the thumping and roaring of the crowd as it reverberated through the concrete hall. Spitfire was at the head of the team, and beside her was Rainbow Dash. The fiery pegasus mare would occasionally glance over to her Co-Captain, although she remained as focused as ever, Spitfire could tell that Rainbow Dash was struggling with what had happened. She got the gist of what happened thanks to the other Knights, but what she couldn't understand was why the other Wonderbolt, Sky Blazer, was giving Rainbow Dash a death glare. "Stay sharp out there everypony! This is our last show and then we get to go on break, so let's make this a good one!" Spitfire announced. "YEAH," shouted the group. All except for two she noticed. I'm fine…just…just focus on the routine. Don't think about it, don't think about…! Damn it Applejack…damn you! "Dash!" Rainbow snapped out of whatever daze she was in and brought her full attention to Spitfire. "You with me Dash?" "Yeah, of course I am," said Rainbow. The rainbow maned pegasus could tell that her Captain was still unsure with her answer, but she'd just have to make due. "FILLIES AND GENTLECOLTS, WELCOME TO THE WONDERBOLTS AIRSHOW! WE'RE SO THRILLED THAT OUR CITY OF CANTERLOT IS THE LAST LEG OF THEIR TOUR! AND NOW…CLAP YOUR HOOVES TOGETHER FOR YOUR FAVORITE TEAM, AND MINE, THE WONDERBOLTS!" Show time, thought Rainbow Dash. Spitfire led the charge, with Rainbow Dash and Soarin right behind her. Next up, the rest of the team came flying out, in a two by two formation. The crowd cheered even louder, the stadium rumbled as the hooves of the many ponies stomped and clapped together in adulation to the ace Equestrian flyers. Once full team was assembled they gathered into a standard V formation, flying around the open-air arena and whizzing by the stands to give the crowd a closer look at the team. Many cheered for their favorite members of the Wonderbolts, while some, a few mind you, made swooning sounds as they caught a glimpse of the pegasus they had a crush on. Once they did their little flyby, the team broke off into two groups, both performed various tricks, all just a preview for what they had planned. Once each splintered group finished, they regrouped in the center, giving slight bows to their fans. As they hovered there, Rainbow Dash's keen eyes caught sight of her son, Clay, along with Twilight, Bright Blade, and…Applejack. Her, now ex-marefriend, barely looked up towards them, almost avoiding her gaze altogether. It hurt Rainbow Dash, seeing their adopted son so happy, completely oblivious to what was going to happen soon after the show. Maybe it was meant to be, it certainly would make it easier for her to tell him what she found out, and…he might actually take the offer. She wasn't sure what scared her more, the fact that she was losing her best friend, the best marefriend she ever had, or that her son was going to hate the both of them. Her worries were quickly dispelled as they were replaced by confusion. All around the crowd had expressions of fear and shock. Shock, surprise, and awe were a few she was used to, but fear was something else entirely. It wasn't until Rainbow noticed that the crowd wasn't looking at them, but above them. "What the…?" A green cloud of mist swirled overhead, getting bigger and bigger by the minute. The cloud then fired two spiraling strands towards them, at first they watched, trying to figure out what this strange phenomenon was. Rainbow Dash then turned back to where Applejack and the others were sitting and as she did, Rainbow heard the voice of her marefriend shout over the crowd. "RAINBOW GET OUTTA THERE NOW!!!" Rainbow Dash looked back up, as the spiraling columns shot down like arrows, striking two of her fellow Wonderbolts. "Rapid Fire, Lightning Streak!!!!" The two Wonderbolts were engulfed by the spiraling twisters and slammed into the side of the stadium walls. When they slid down the ponies gasped in horror. Rainbow Dash wasn't too afraid; they've survived worse than that. She did, however, worry when she saw that neither one was getting up. "No…no this can't be happening…!" The rest of the team flew down to tend to their injured comrades, before they could get close; a bubble of magical energy surrounded the down pegasi. Rainbow Dash immediately recognized the aura color, and knew exactly who was behind it. "Twilight, what's the big idea!!!? Let us help them!!!" Rainbow shouted. Just then two bright flashes of light shined in the stands. Both Twilight and Bright Blade had summoned their armor. Twilight floated towards them, using her magical energy wings. "You can't help them, they're both infected look!" Upon closer inspection the team of pegasi noticed her words to be true. Both Rapid Fire and Lightning Streak were a sickening shade of green, neither one of them were breathing, they both just lied there, still. The other Wonderbolts didn't know what to say, to have their teammates just die like that… Suddenly the cloud of disease ridden mist floated down towards the stadium. Many of the fans were frozen; unable to move or scream for fear that the cloud might attack them next. The mist started to part, creating an opening as a figure emerged from within. His wings were large and menacing, like a vultures. His armor a dark green that mostly covered him from head to hoof, what coat color was visible, showed a dark gray coat. The menace narrowed its yellow glowing eyes and smiled wickedly. Bright Blade quickly flew up to meet the new invader, matching his wicked stare, with a fierce one of his own. "So you're back Polemos, and in a new form! What's the matter, afraid you couldn't beat me in your red armor!?" The armored pegasus scoffed at the accusation as if it were an insult. "Do not compare me to my battle crazed brother, lowly hybrid creature!" Bright Blade looked confused, but upon further inspection, this Envoy was less muscular than Polemos, and his voice had a snake like feel to it. "Then who the hay are you, identify yourself," demanded Bright Blade. "I am the Second Envoy, Loimos! Spirit of Pestilence, bringer of disease and paranoia! Unlike my brother, however, I do not dawdle with the thrill of battle, I simply just kill," stated Loimos. "Like now – Blighted Wind!!! " Loimos flapped his large intimidating wings in Bright Blade's direction. It was as if the disease ridden wind was produced by the fanning of his wings, as a large plume blasted its way towards the alicorn stallion. Bright Blade hurriedly created a barrier around himself, the wind buffeted the golden bubble, scratching and slashing, trying to get at the prize within. Bright was getting worried; this Spirit of Pestilence was even stronger than the Spirit of War! That's when it dawned on him, what Polemos meant by not holding back, and the truth behind Loimos' words. "I can see you finally understand the kind of power you're up against, now at least you can die knowing that there was nothing you could've done to stop this!" Loimos prepared to give one more flap of his wings in order to break through Bright's barrier, but was stopped when he noticed multiple multicolored beams of light shoot towards him. The Spirit of Pestilence raised his left wing and used it as a shield to block the three beams, each one exploding on impact. The distraction proved beneficial, as it allowed Bright Blade enough time to slip away from the bombarding winds and into clear air. Loimos growled at the loss of his prey and searched for the cause. "Who dares!?" "That'd be me!" Loimos turned around to see a rainbow maned pegasus mare, garbed in golden armor. Her wings were like crystal, and upon her forelegs shined two crescent blades, and a red lightning bolt jewel upon her chest plate. "Bright make sure my teammates get out of here, I'll take care of this guy," said Rainbow Dash. Bright Blade flew up next his armored friend and floated close, in an attack stance. "Rainbow, believe me when I say these Envoy aren't push overs!" Bright whispered. "And what, the guy's we've fought in the past were," scoffed Rainbow. "I'm serious!" "And so am I, just get everypony out of here so we can ALL take this guy down TOGETHER!" Reluctantly, Bright left Rainbow Dash, leaving just her and the Envoy, Loimos. "So then, you think you can take me on all by yourself!?" "Not by herself!" Both Rainbow and Loimos looked off into the direction of the unknown voice. Rainbow quickly recognized the voice, she could never forget it, nor mistake it for anypony else. Applejack floated towards Rainbow Dash, standing atop a flattened boulder, and having four others hovering around her in an orbit, each one brimming with power. Her Stetson hat was pulled down slightly, making her already intense glare even more intimidating. "You…you're the one who drove me away in that kingdom!" Loimos growled. "AJ what is he talking about?" "This thing created a disease that killed a whole bunch of griffons in the Griffon Kingdom, mah Element drove him away, fer good Ah hoped," said Applejack. "Your hope was misplaced, but no matter…Time to do what my brother could not…KILL ALL OF YOU!!!" Loimos fired to spiral columns of wind at Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Both mares quickly dodged the attack and circled around the Spirit of Pestilence. Rainbow fired multiple shots from her wings, each Spectrum Beam made contact with the Envoy, but seemed to do little damage to him, only frustrating the rainbow maned pegasus. Applejack jumped up from her floating platform and grabbed one of the large boulders. She concentrated and infused her power into the boulder, drawing back and aiming at Loimos. "Meteor Wrecker!!!" The earth pony mare hurled the boulder, its core and surface burning with power. Loimos flapped his wing, firing a gust of Blighted Wind at the object. The wind and stone collided as they pushed against each other. After a few seconds the boulder explode, the air pressure moving the cloud of disease ridden wind away from the Envoy. Applejack summoned her platform; she then used her powerful hind legs to springboard off of it. AJ cocked back her right hoof, focusing her super strength into a single point to maximize the damage to her target. Loimos saw the attack coming, chuckling at her futility. A tornado of Blighted Wind swirled around the Spirit of Pestilence, creating a protective barrier around himself. Applejack saw this and gasped, she couldn't change her direction, and her platform was too far to catch her. Before she got within striking distance of the cloud a rainbow streak flew towards AJ and pushed out of the way. The farmpony mare blinked for minute, and in the next she was in the cradling grasp of her mare – her fri – comrade. Rainbow Dash gently placed Applejack on her floating platform and sighed in relief. "Thanks Rainbow," said Applejack weakly. "It's no big," replied Rainbow. Rainbow Dash turned her withering gaze upon Loimos. She flew off in another direction, and once Rainbow had made it to the distance she wanted, she began to spin rapidly in place. "Rainblossom!!!" All at once Spectrum Beams fired from the spinning multicolored sphere, dozens upon dozens of beams shot in all directions. They soon bent at different angles, each one aimed directly for Loimos. The Envoy used his Blighted Wind attack to intercept the attacks, but his wind couldn't destroy the multitudes that kept streaming, almost, endlessly at him. Loimos took evasive action, flying higher into the sky. He barrel rolled to the left, and then to the right, descending and then ascending, dodging the beams that seemed to attack from every direction. When Loimos thought he was safe from the beams, he was surprised to find out that he was in fact surrounded by them. Before Loimos could utter a word, all the beams descended upon him, explodoing in a dazzling display of sparkling explosions. Rainbow Dash broke free of the spinning ball and shot for Loimos. She knew that wouldn't be enough to take down this Spirit of Pestilence. Rainbow extended her crescent blades, and dove in for the kill. The dust cloud was thick and Rainbow Dash couldn't tell what was happening to Loimos, all she knew was that she needed to attack before he got the chance to –! The dust cloud was blown away by a strong gust of wind from Loimos' wings. Rainbow Dash quickly broke off her attack and flew in another direction getting away before the Envoy could counterattack. Rainbow flew back to Applejack's side, the country pony wore a look of relief that was not lost on the cyan pegasus. "I see, your more lethal attacks are better at close range…you can't get close enough because of my Blighted Wind," said Loimos. "Fine fer us; you'll need all the handicaps ya can get to beat us!" Applejack shouted. "Look at you two, fighting together, when you were ready to tear each other's throats out." Both mares looked at each other in confusion, how would Loimos know about what they went through earlier? Then it dawned on them, the voice in their minds, the voice that brought up all their fears and anxieties, that drove them to do what that did. "YOU," they said in unison. "Correct," he answered. "Rainbow Ah'm sor –!" "I'm sorry too!" Rainbow Dash and Applejack did a hoof pump and smiled confidently to each other. Their smile disappeared when they turned their attention back on the one responsible for everything that's been going through their minds lately, egging their fears and bringing them to a painful boil. "Buddy, it's whole a new ball game now!" "FIREFLY!?" Clay shouted. The stadium echoed with the thunderous booms of the battle happening in the arena. Many of the other ponies had been evacuated thanks to his Aunt and Uncle, and the Wonderbolts team. Clay had lost sight of Dinky and Sky Tearer when the crowd started to make a mad dash for the exits, and Clay didn't have a clue where Firefly was. He had assumed she stayed to watch the show, as mad as Firefly was at him, he knew she wouldn't pass up a chance to see the Wonderbolts in action. Problem was he didn't see her in the stands, and the open columns in the lobby areas are large enough for a pegasus to perch on and watch the show from, so he figured Firefly must be there somewhere. Please tell me she already left and I'm just on a wild goose chase! Although Clay knew flying would be faster, with the continuous rumbling and shaking of the structure made it clear that flying was out of the question, unless he wanted to be knocked out by some random debris that fell off of the ceiling. As the fight raged on in the arena Clay had already searched the lower E through C levels and was now on his way towards the B deck. She has to be here, A deck is outside, if she didn't fly away by now then… Clay shook his head, trying to dislodge the morbid, negative thoughts from entering his mind. He couldn't afford to think like that, not if he was going to find her. "FIREFLY!!? FIREFLY IF YOU'RE THERE ANSWER ME!!!" "Clay…" He froze. "Clay…?" "Firefly! I'm here, say something else!" Clay called out. "Clay…!" Her voice sounded distant, it echoed in the stone and concrete hallway, making it hard to pinpoint her location. That's when Clay made the decision, if she was close; the fastest way he was going to find Firefly was by flying. Another rumble and shake from the stadium loosed some dust and debris from the walls and ceiling once again, as if telling him this wasn't a good idea. I'm not afraid! I'm coming Firefly! Clay flared his wings and took off down the hall. As he predicted, chunks of stone and concrete fell from the ceiling as he flew, Clay quickly dodged them, maneuvering just inches away from each piece. The only thing he had to worry about was the rest of his body, since his wings were fake, if they got damaged it wouldn't be a big deal. Clay kept his eyes peeled, flying for ten minutes before he spotted Firefly's pink coat amongst the white and gray slaps. The faux pegasus skidded to a halt on the ground. Clay gasped when he saw Firefly. She was caught under a huge slab of stone; rebar was sticking out of it from different directions, making him fear the worst. Clay approached his…could he even call her his fillyfriend anymore? In any case, he trotted slowly towards her, her coat was dirty, and her mane was messy. The pink pegasus filly seemed unconscious, making him even more worried. "Firefly, please talk to me!? Are you alright!?" Soft moans could be heard coming from Firefly's mouth. Clay bent down and gently nuzzled her face. Firefly started to stir, raising her head slightly. "Clay…? You came looking for me…" "Of course I did, there's no way I wouldn't come looking for you," said Clay. "I'm sorry…Clay…I didn't give you a chance to explain…I just stormed away without even hearing your side, I was just so overwhelmed and surprised by everything that colt said…Clay…" "Shh, it's okay, I'm not angry or sad, and you don't have anything to be sorry for, if anything I'm the one who should be sorry! I swear Firefly, when we get out of this, we'll start over, I promise," said Clay. "I'd like that, Clay…I really would," said Firefly, smiling sincerely at the earth pony colt. Another rumble from the stadium told Clay that he needed to hurry before anything else happened. He quickly maneuvered his forehooves under the slab, pushing with his hind legs, in an attempt to lift the one ton piece of debris. Clay tried to push with everything he had, but it was to no avail. "Clay…it's no use…please…get out of here," she pleaded. "No way, I'm not leaving you here!" Clay fanned out his wings once again, pushing up on the slab while flapping his wings. It seemed to give him more leverage, the slab started to make scraping noises as it started to move up. "Almost there!" Clay panted and growled, drawing on whatever primal strength he could muster! In the end though, it wasn't enough, the slab fell back down, luckily, it didn't seem to harm Firefly. "I'm sorry…I'm sorry…" Clay could feel the tears starting to form in his eyes, inside he was cursing at himself, he had found a way to save her, but his wings weren't strong enough. "Don't tell me you're giving up already blank flank!" Clay turned around and Sky Tearer, one pony he really didn't have time for right now. "Sky, if you want to beat the crap out of me, you can do it later! Right now I need to help Firefly, so either leave or punch me!" Clay shouted. Sky Tearer snorted. He then started to advance towards Clay and Firefly. The pink pegasus filly was noticeably shaking, she knew the kind ferocity that Sky Tearer was capable of, and given the situation, it was a perfect time for him to exact his revenge. Clay entered a fighting stance, one that his Uncle had taught him, pretty basic, good for either armed or hoof-to-hoof combat. However, when Sky Tearer approached Clay, he simply stared him down. After a few seconds the dark blue pegasus trotted to the opposite side of Firefly and started to work his hooves under the slab. "You going to help, or not," he asked. Clay and Firefly blinked at that. "Well!?" Clay immediately got into position, placing his hooves under the edge of the slab. "Together on three! One…Two…THREE!!!" Sky Tearer and Clay flapped their wings furiously at the same time, pushing up with their hind legs and lifting with their forehooves. The stone slab scraped and grated in protest as the two colts began to lift it up. Firefly slowly started to feel the weight of the debris lessen with each passing second; hope began to find its way into her heart, the combined efforts of the two colts was working. "I just need a little more room…!" "You heard the lady, push," grunted Clay. "What the hay do you think I'm doing," growled Sky. Their forelegs burned with the strain of load they bared, their wings felt like they were going to fall off. In Clay's case it felt more literal than metaphorical. With a savage yell, both Clay and Sky pushed up with all they had. Firefly saw the progress, and quickly crawled out from under the slab as fast as she possibly could. Once Clay saw that her tail was clear he nodded towards Sky Tearer who nodded back, at once they released their burden, landing upon the ground with a loud and booming thud. Both Clay and Sky collapsed onto the floor, rolling onto the backs and taking in long deep breathes, trying to regain the strength they had used up. Firefly stood, shakily, on her hooves, and carefully made her way to the earth pony colt. "Clay, Sky, are you two alright," asked Firefly as she nuzzled Clay. "Let's see, I can't feel my forelegs, is that a good thing," asked Clay. "You'll live," groaned Sky. "Hey…thanks…for helping, Sky Tearer." "You weren't half bad yourself…blank fla – I mean, Clay." "I'd hoof, bump ya, but I'm not sure if I'd feel it." Sky started to chuckle which caused Clay to do the same, both of them breaking out into a small fit of laughter at their pathetic states. Firefly smiled, although she didn't know the full history between these two, it was nice to see that they were laughing together. Unfortunately their moment didn't last too long, explosions and thundering booms shook the stadium once again, this time more violently than the other times before it. "Guys, I think we better leave before…!" *BOOOOOOOMMMM!!!!* The rafters were crumbling, cracks spider webbing in every direction. Dust along with small fragments of rock and concrete cascaded from overhead, causing the three ponies to panic. Sky Tearer and Clay got to their hooves, which stung in protest from the weight they placed on them, their wings weren't fairing much better. Just then a loud tear-like sound screeched from above them, all three of them gasped in horror as a large chunk of ceiling fell down, there was no time for either of them to dodge it, this was it, and it'd all be over in just a few short seconds. The galloping of hooves came fast and swift, the blade of a sword, studded with three gems, shined in the dust filled air. The filly, Dinky Hooves, sword in tow, saw the danger her friends were in, forsaking all concern for her own safety, she plunged head first. Picking a spot on the ground ahead of her, Dinky then jumped into the air, grasping the sword hilt into the crook of her hooves. The blade glowed bright, as if imitating the power of the sun itself, timing it just right; Dinky swung the blade at the falling debris. As the blade made contact, a powerful stream of magical light slashed through to the other end of the debris, causing it to split in two. The energy then released, causing both ends of the divided stone to fall further away, landing with a concussive thud. Dinky somersaulted once in the air and landed on her hind legs, still gripping her sword tightly and keeping a focused gaze. Clay, Firefly, and Sky just stared in awe at what the little unicorn had just done, mouths agape. Dinky released her sword back into her telekinetic grip, allowing herself to stand on all four of her hooves. She then turned around and smiled warmly at her friends. "Hey, are you guys okay," asked Dinky. All three just simply nodded. "Oh thank Celestia, when I lost track of Sky Tearer I was afraid something bad happened." "Everything's fine Dinky, Sky Tearer helped me save Firefly," said Clay. Mentioning his heroism seemed to make Sky Tearer embarrassed, which was only made all the more apparent when Dinky flashed him a smile that he found cute for some reason. At that moment the four ponies heard another series of explosions, Clay was getting increasingly worried about his mothers. Without warning he dashed for one of the entrances to the arena, the light outside blinded him for a split second, but after his eyes adjusted he stopped galloping. Dinky, Firefly, and Sky were close behind and trotted next to Clay, their speechless expressions matching Clay's. The stands were littered with craters and missing pieces of steel and stone. The arena clouds were gone, the aerial hoops and flags destroyed. One section of the stands had completely fallen off from the supports, evidence of its long decent shone in the bits that were still clinging to the side of the cliff. Clay searched frantically for any sign of his mothers, when his gaze drew higher. Up above Clay noticed the cloud of the Envoy and the one creating it. Across from him, a couple of yards away, were Applejack and Rainbow Dash, his adopted parents glowing with power. "Mom…Ma…" Applejack and Rainbow Dash floated in midair, staring down Loimos. His smug grin only infuriating the two mares even more, in the span of time they had been engaged in battle with the Spirit of Pestilence, he had withstood many of their attacks and yet showed no sign of damage or fatigue. However the same could not be said for either of them. Applejack had lost her Stetson hat, her mane and tail, which was usually tied up at the ends, was loose and unkempt. Burses could be seen from the gaps in the armor, as well as dents in the actual armor itself. Rainbow Dash fared no better, part of her rainbow plume was cut off, her crystal wings had cracks in them, as well as some chip marks. "Well ladies, I thought you two were going to defeat me," asked Loimos. "Oh you're about to get yours," said Applejack. "Where the heck are Twilight and Bright Blade," whispered Rainbow, "They should've gotten everypony clear away from here by now!" "Your reinforcements won't be coming I'm afraid." Both Applejack and Rainbow Dash gave him a dejected look. "They're probably too busy dealing with the weaker lot who are more easily affected by my power. Take it from me, a large crowd of frightened, paranoid citizens is not something easily controlled. And it will only get worse." Applejack snorted, "So, we're on our own." "You think it's time for…that?" Rainbow asked. "That's our strongest attack Rainbow, we'll barely have enough power for a counterattack!" "At the rate this is going we won't have enough power to even use it! It's all or nothing AJ!" Applejack waited a moment, with a confident smile she nodded to Rainbow Dash who mimicked the gesture. Loimos was growing impatient with the mares, and unleashed his Blighted Wind attack in their direction. Using this opportunity, they separated and got into position. Rainbow Dash flew high over Loimos, while Applejack positioned herself below the Envoy a few yards down. The Spirit of Pestilence didn't understand what their strategy was, but he wasn't too worried, they'd barely been able to hurt him up till now, what's the worst they could do. The wind started to howl, the air thrummed with power. Applejack's body glowed with orange light, her armor gleaming, her eyes shining with built up energy. Further down below the earth pony mare something was rising up to meet her, it was a giant tornado, made up of dirt and stone. While up above, Rainbow Dash called upon the winds, they twisted and gusted around the pegasus mare, her rose colored eyes shining with power. "A new trick is it, very well…" Loimos flew off to the right, stopped and fanned out his wings. "I accept your challenge!" "Fury of the Sky!" "Roar of the Land!" The two mares launched themselves at the Envoy. Surrounded by their tornados of earth and wind, Applejack and Rainbow Dash thrust out their right hooves, a glowing aura of orange and blue energy forming on them. Loimos summoned his power, his wings shimming with energy and more of the disease cloud. "Great Plague!!!" Loimos flapped his wings in the direction of the oncoming attack, the spiraling wind blast of green vapor shined with the power of the Envoy. The two attacks struck each, causing a massive shockwave! The three tornados ground against each other, the sound similar to metal scraping against metal. The wind blasted from every direction as the forces of nature were tested against the power of evil. Applejack and Rainbow Dash poured more of their power into their attack, forcing the Great Plague back. Emboldened by their progress they pushed on, inch by inch, Loimos' attack was getting closer to its point of origin. Soon they were about ten feet away, practically within hooves reach. "While I don't share my brother Polemos' enthusiasm for battle, I do like drawing in those would be resistors in order to crush my prey's hope of victory, like how I'm doing right now!" "What," they shouted in unison. Loimos' body ignited with a dark green energy, his yellow eyes shining with greater intensity. He then channeled the power into his wings and flapped them once more; the Great Plague tripled in size and roared an unequestrian roar, like a terrifying beast. The wind blast completely overwhelmed Applejack's and Rainbow Dash's tornados, engulfing them, sending the pair spiraling and spinning around. The Great Plague slammed into the stands, exploding in a shower of green sparks and mist, debris thrown in every direction possible. Loimos ceased the blast and surveyed his work. Rainbow Dash groaned in pain, her body felt like it was going to be torn apart. She wasn't a stranger to turbulence, but that was on a completely different level. Rainbow turned her attention to her marefriend, who seemed to be in the same amount of pain that she was in. Strangely enough, the both of them had an outline of red and orange around their bodies. Rainbow Dash remembered this glow, it was the same aura that protected her when she flew up into the atmosphere, and when Applejack brought the two of them underground. "A-Applejack, you still alive…?" "Ugh…unless they changed the meanin' of the word in the dictionary, yeah Ah am…" "I hate to say it…but I think we're in trouble…" "What was your first clue…sugarcube…?" "Hmmm, interesting, that should've killed you both. Your armor seems to protect you from my disease inducing winds. But~ I willing to wager that armor has a breaking point. Let's find out shall we," said Loimos. "Oh buck," said Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Clay, Firefly, Dinky, and Sky watched in a combination of horror and awe as the entire battle played out before them. And now, Clay could only stand and watch as his mothers were being assaulted by the Envoy's unrelenting attacks. His faced darkened, eyes narrowing, gritting his teeth in anger. "Clay," whispered Firefly. "Dinky," he said. "Y-yeah," asked Dinky. "Your sword, I need to borrow it." Sky, Firefly, and Dinky all stared at the earth pony colt, dumbfounded by his request. And then it struck them what his words meant. "Hold on, look, I know your moms are in trouble! But that thing is scary strong! If they can't beat him – and they're Knights of Harmony – what makes you think you can," asked Sky Tearer. "What makes you think I don't stand a chance!?" "Clay listen to him, we need to go and get your Aunt and Uncle, some Royal Guards, more Knight Corp. warriors, someone! You can't fly out there alone!" Firefly then turned to Dinky with pleading eyes. "Dinky please talk some sense into him!" Dinky glanced to the two pegasi, and then to her best friend. The look in his eyes told her that Clay would not be deterred from this, he would go out there, whether he had her sword or not. In Dinky's mind, going out there armed, was better than just your bare hooves. Dinky levitated the sword towards Clay, eliciting gasps of disbelief from Firefly and Sky Tearer. "The gems activate on impact, releasing a concentrated energy slash that explodes after words. You have about ten more strikes before the blade loses power." "Dinky!?" Sky shouted. "What are you saying," asked Firefly. "It has wards to protect you, but given that thing's strength, I'd advise against taking direct attacks from him. Just remember, once the energy is used up, it's just an enchanted blade. Promise me you'll get out of there once you've used up the last strike." "I will…" Clay turned to Firefly, he said no words, he only leaned forward and kissed the filly softly on the cheek, causing her to blush and gasp from the action. He then turned to Sky Tearer, though he had angered expression, that did not stop the pegasus colt from nodding to Clay, to which Clay returned the gesture. The faux pegasus colt clamped his teeth around the hilt of the sword floating before him, turned around, flared his wings, and flew into the air. "How could you let him do that!? He's your best friend, you could've stopped him," said Firefly, tears starting to form in her eyes. "It's because I'm his best friend that I know he would've flew off with or without my sword. At least he has better a chance of surviving armed, plus…I believe in him…" "He's an idiot, but…so do I," said Firefly. "Ditto," admitted Sky Tearer, reluctantly. Loimos loomed over his prey, they writhed in agony from his Blighted Wind blasts, and he enjoyed every minute of it. Applejack and Rainbow Dash had crawled closer to each other, using their joined energy to fight off as much of the disease carrying wind as they could. "I'd say one more shot will end this, let's make it a good one!" Loimos declared. Rainbow Dash and Applejack could sense the Spirit of Pestilence raise his power, a sinister smile creeping across his lips. "Looks like this our last round up…" "Damn, just when I got Granny Smith's permission to marry you…" Applejack weakly turned to Dash, "You're pullin' mah leg, right?" "Uh-uh…totally serious…" Rainbow Dash took her marefriend's hoof into her own and smiled at her. Applejack smiled back at Rainbow, squeezing her hoof tightly in return, both of them preparing to accept their fates. As Loimos prepared to fire something whizzed by his field of vision causing him to hesitate, the next moment the object passed by him again, only this time he felt something hit his wing. After a brief second Loimos' left wing exploded causing the Envoy to stumble backwards, stopping his preparation. "Who dares to hinder me!?" "I DARE!" Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Loimos, watched as a light gold pegasus flew about, carrying a sword in his mouth. It didn't take long for the two mares to figure out who that pegasus was, what they couldn't believe was that he had wings, their son had wings! Clay flew at amazing speeds, keeping a vigilant eye on his target as he circled about. He dove straight down once again, keeping a tight grip on the sword. The winged pony slashed once again, slicing down the right wing, leaving a glowing lesion. When Clay was a few feet away the lesion exploded, causing Loimos to lose balance in sky. That was two, eight more strikes till it's out of power, got to make them count, thought Clay. Clay flew around, waiting and watching for an opening to attack. The Spirit of Pestilence was on to him now, and wouldn't let himself get hit a third time. The evil pegasus fired a single spiraling column of Blighted Wind at Clay. The winged pony leaned left as the blast of green mist screeched towards him, the sword began to glow as a shimmering barrier appeared around him. The Blighted Wind scrapped against the barrier, threating to destroy it on contact, Clay remembered Dinky's warning about not taking any direct attacks, so he drifted further to the left, allowing the wind blast to shoot over him. "How did he –!?" Now!!! Clay barrel rolled and flew even faster at Loimos. He dove down low, finding an intact cloud; Clay rebounded off the cloud and propelled himself up, the air whistled in his ears, his eyes squinting from stinging rush wind hitting his face. Loimos was coming up fast, Clay switched from using his mouth to placing it into the crook his hooves. With one upwards vertical swing, the blade made contact with Loimos' right side; the glowing cut appeared, making the Envoy hiss from the slight pain. Clay didn't stop there; he quickly slashed Loimos on his back, and at the back of his neck. Clay quickly flew away, just in time as all three slashes exploded in a shower of yellow energy. Loimos growled in anger as his armor hissed from the three strikes he carelessly allowed the winged earth pony to land. Clay knew he only had one last attack left before Dinky's sword became nothing more than an enchanted weapon. With that in mind, Clay climbed higher into the sky, putting the sun at his back. When Clay was at the desired height he tightly grasped the sword and nosedived straight for Loimos. The Spirit of Pestilence looked up, the sun blinding his eyes, but he had a general idea of where the annoying colt was. Building up his power, Loimos unleashed a twin torrent of his Great Plague attack, the two blast burned a sickening green and black as the energy infused columns roared in Clay's general direction. Clay watched as Loimos' attacks came directly for him, keeping the sword held forward, he continued on his flight path. The two columns missed him, giving him a narrow path to follow down the middle. Clay had to keep as straight as he could or else risk getting touched by the disease inducing wind. Unfortunately the further he flew, the narrower the gap got. The protective ward of the sword had already activated, but it was not going to last long, already Clay could see the barrier starting to wane, cracking like a fragile eggshell. When the barrier touched the edges of the twin columns it shattered completely. Clay watched as both his wings were being swallowed up by the roaring winds that flanked him. "Heh, heh, ha! I'll infect you, first your wings, and then, the rest of you will follow! You'll nothing more than a rotting disease ridden corpse on collision course with the ground below!" Loimos shouted. Clay grunted and strained under the turbulent force of the winds, but, he smirked, a confident, it's not over kind of smirk. "That would be the case, if my wings weren't fake!" At that moment Clay's wings broke apart, crumbling like dry leaves in autumn. No longer was he Clay the winged pony, now he was Clay the earth pony. The sword in his hooves glowed as the remaining energy was funneled to the blade. Clay spun in the air a few times, building up momentum as he grew closer to Loimos. When he was less than three feet away, Clay raised up his sword and stared the Spirit of Pestilence straight in his glowing yellow eyes. "This is for my Mom and Ma!!!" With single swing, the blade raked across left front of Loimos' chest. The after image of the slash shined brightly, erupting into a giant explosion of light and smoke, obscuring both Clay and Loimos from sight. All eyes focused on the cloud of smoke, Sky, Dinky and Firefly waited in anticipation for the smoke to clear from, hoping that he was alright. Rainbow Dash and Applejack were in the same boat, but both of them had many questions flying through their heads, how did Clay get those wings, and how did he learn how to handle a sword like that. Suddenly they heard what sounded like thunder coming from the cloud. In that same moment, a spiraling wind blast shot forth from the cloud. When it disappeared all gasped at what they saw next. It was Clay, falling towards Applejack and Rainbow Dash, completely still. Rainbow Dash, summoning all the strength she could, flapped her wings and zoomed towards her son. The rainbow maned mare held out her forehooves and caught the colt. "Clay!" Rainbow shouted. He was sweating profusely and coughing. Rainbow could feel his racing heart as she heard him udder shallow rapid breaths, almost gasping for air. She quickly flew back to Applejack, and laid him down between them. Rainbow Dash looked to her marefriend, her expression confirming what mere words couldn't. "Clay, can ya hear us sugarcube!?" "C'mon squirt, answer us, please!" There was stirring, Clay slowly opened his eyes, they were bloodshot, and faded, almost as if he were blind. "Ma…Mom…I can't see you…" Rainbow and AJ each took one of his hooves into their own. "We're here Clay, we're right here," said Applejack. "Sorry…Sorry I didn't tell either of you about my wings…" "Don't be, you were awesome out there, we couldn't be more proud of you," said Rainbow Dash. Clay gave a few violent coughs, Applejack and Rainbow let out horrified gasps when they saw blood fly out his mouth with each cough. "I think…I think I'm dying…" "No you're not, we'll get Twilight here! She can help you, I know it!" "Mom…Ma…promise me you'll always be together…I know you two love each other, so please, don't break up because of this…" The two mares could believe what they were hearing. Their son was dying in front of them, and yet, his concern was directed only to their relationship. Their eyes watered as tears began to stream down their cheeks. Both Rainbow Dash and Applejack leaned down and planted a kiss on either side of Clay's cheeks, they then whispered into his ears. "We promise…" Loimos loomed over the family chuckling at how feeble they were, how weak and pathetic their display of familial affection was. "Do not worry; all three of you will soon be together. I'll end his suffering along with yours in one fell swoop!" The power of the Envoy flared up once again, the black and green energy surrounding his wings as the mist started to form, thicker and heavier than before. "Great Plague…!" With one synchronized flap of his mighty wings, Loimos unleashed his most powerful attack upon the three ponies. Dinky, Sky Tearer, and Firefly screamed at the family of three, telling them repeatedly to get out of the way, to run and flee from the oncoming attack. From the other entrance of the stadium, Twilight and Bright Blade teleported inside, but only made it in time to watch as Loimos' attack drew nearer to their friends. They too added their voices to the foals, urging their friends to run and get away as fast as they could. But it was no use, the unified Great Plague struck the side of the stands were Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Clay were. Nothing could be heard over the roaring of the wind and destruction of the crumbling stone and concrete that surrounded the area. That's a lie, there was something to be heard, the sound of Loimos, the Spirit of Pestilence, bringer of disease and paranoia, laughing boisterously, reveling in the act of snuffing out three lives before everypony's eyes… It is time… Clay has resolved his feud with Sky Tearer and in the process regained the affections of Firefly. In the same day, Rainbow Dash and Applejack have thrown away their earlier jealously and anger. But was all of it for not? Was everything that they had gone through as a family wiped out by the Envoy known as Loimos!? Find out in Part 9 of the Second Sign Arc!